Return to the Homelands
by onwingsofsnark
Summary: Darrow and Calwyn sneak off after Emeran is asleep. That night, Trout has a dream that will change the way the whole group views death. This is a story that will test the limits of Chantment and the group will discover that love lingers after death.HIATUS
1. Off in the Night

**NO: Yay! I have discovered the location for Chanters of Tremaris! (Thinks there should be a separate place for CoT fanfictions :-( Wonders why there isn't…)**

**Onto the story.**

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Chanters of Tremaris. Kate Constable does, if ever there was a great author, she's one of 'em!**_

_Chapter 1: Off in the Night_

Calwyn looked out the window of their cottage while fingering the single plait down her back. _My_ cottage, she corrected herself. But the more she thought on it, the more she thought it was still 'Mica and Calwyn's Cottage'. Halasaa was almost finished with his garden and Darrow didn't go out on his little skiff (he bought a new one, named _Flight_). Everything was perfect, except the distinct lack of Mica. Tonno still fished, and the group still preyed on pirate ships, but it wasn't nearly as fun as it used to be.

Her head buzzed, _Chantment_, she whispered in her head. She reached out with her Power of Becoming, she felt where everyone was on the island. She found their group all except…

She turned. "Darrow!" He hugged her roughly. They pulled apart.

Something tugged at him. "Calwyn, I think I want to travel again." He said.

"But we only just got home!" She searched his eyes.

"I know, Cal, I know." He said. "But I need to-" he stopped. "Never mind, you're not, _not_, I repeat, coming."

She stomped her foot on the dirt floor. "I am too! What if you need my chantments?" she asked.

"But-"

"No buts, mister, I am coming whether you like it or not!" He smiled, his silvery scar shined in the dim moonlight.

"Fine." He relinquished. "But we leave tonight."

Grinning broadly, Calwyn went about the hut picking up things she thought she would need. She pulled out her trunk. Opening it, there was a yellow tunic on top… it yanked out a memory she didn't want to relive.

_**Flash-back**_

_Calwyn pressed her Power of Becoming into the lifeless form. The gazing eyes never blinked, she never would rise. Calwyn broke down._

_"Mica, no!" she wept hard that night. Many more after that as well._

_**Flash-forward**_

Cal wiped away tears and pressed the yellow tunic to the bottom of the trunk. She pulled out un-dyed wool and linen clothes. They were plainer than the yellow tunic… and no one would recognize her. Darrow's skiff was still docked. She made her way up the gangplank and saw Darrow emerge, he held out his hand to her. Just and her foot was to clear the railing, it caught and she fell…

…Right into Darrow's arms.

"Thanks." She whispered. The Lone Maiden soared in the night sky. He picked her up and with a half-spin set her down on the calm boat. Calwyn clung to him. As a thank-you, she pecked him on the cheek. He smiled again and took her bags to the spare room.

The pair took off into the night, the light notes of Calwyn's song pushing the boat along.

Halasaa woke that night. He felt for his sister, she was gone, as was Darrow. He reached out into the sea, just faintly he could feel her.

_Come back someday, my sister._

_I promise, brother of mine._ She responded. _Darrow wants to travel; I demanded to come along. Farewell._

_Farewell._


	2. Trout's Dream I

**NO: Hi again. Umm, I really want to know why there isn't a separate place for these fanfics, but, eh, I guess I'll have to deal with it!**

_Chapter 2: Trout's Dream_

Trout awoke. He had a scary dream. It had been unlike anything he'd ever dreamt, or ever wanted to again._ Calwyn will explain it, I'll just walk up to her hut and she'll tell me what it means, or what it might mean…_

He pulled on his clothes, grabbed his lens, someone knocked on his door.

"Trout!" Tonno called. "You still sleeping? C'mon, Darrow and Calwyn are gone, they took _Flight_ with them!"

"Coming Tonno!" He yelled. Opening the door, Halasaa, Tonno and Keela all stood waiting. "What?"

"We have to go after them." Tonno growled; Keela clung to his arm. They had become closer, though, he could never forget the windworker who he'd first thought of as a sister, then a woman two years after he'd met her. He shook the rise of tears, what would everyone else think if he cried?

_My sister had no alarm. She and Darrow decided they wanted to travel._ Halasaa, quiet as ever, said aloud ("aloud" being in mind-speak). In private, his sister and him practiced singing.

"Why will _we_ need to chase _them_? I think _we_ should let _them_ do what _they_ want." Keela voiced. Everyone stared in surprise. "Stop staring, _I _am perfectly capable of being sensitive."

"I think it would be okay if they got away for a while, Calwyn hasn't been the same since…" Trout stopped talking.

_None of us has, None of us will be the same. The ever-flowing river has pushed Mica in a different direction that us. Do not be sad for Mica, she floats free._

Tonno, being out-voted, resigned, taking Keela back to their cabin. Halasaa was leaving, Trout decided to ask Halasaa about his dream.

_Trout sat on a bank; he was next to an ever-flowing river. The hills were green and the river turquoise-blue. The sky was azure-blue and cotton-like clouds floated on the winds._

_Halasaa appeared nest to him. Unlike real-life, Halasaa spoke. It was scratchy, as if he'd never spoken… which he never had, Trout reminded himself._

_"I see what you mean, brother, this is like the Knot of the Waters. Only, unlike it. This is more dream-like."_

_"Dream-like?" Trout asked, he'd never thought of two different worlds that overlapped._

_"Yes, this is most unusual. My sister and I shall explore it when she gets back. Thank you, Trout, for bringing me here." Halasaa disappeared just as rapidly as he had appeared._

_Then, the nightmare began, again._

_Trout fell in an endless darkness. Scenes from the past flashed in his vision. He saw Calwyn trying to heal the lands. He saw Mica die again. He saw the Voiced Ones come in a silver ship on the night of a blood moon. He saw Darrow catch the sickness, he saw Samis 'die' in Spareth._

_He finally landed… with a thud. Around him were dead figures. He saw an aged woman in Antaris robes, Marna. He saw the woman they'd rescued from the Wall, but she had already been dead. He saw the image of a dead Samis, though it flickered, as if he was on the border of death and life._

_Finally, the wave of dead broke and one that Trout had loved passionately came into view. Mica._

The sun broke over the horizon. Calwyn dressed in light pants and a shirt, she then left the spare cabin. It didn't take her long to reach where Darrow was steering the skiff. He was steering slightly south and west.

"Morning," she whispered. He turned and smiled. He smiled more often in her presence.

"Morning, Calwyn." He locked the wheel with a small block of wood that he sang into place. He turned to Calwyn. Slipping his hand behind her back, he kissed her on lips. A wave of emotions surged against the Singer of all Songs. She clutched Darrow closer.

Finally, many minutes later, they let each other go about the duties, Calwyn delighted in calling the winds to speed the skiff. They would reach Geel in just a few days rather than the weeks normally required.


	3. Darrow's Name

**NO: Yay. I put in a request for a 'Kate Constable' section. Hehe. This allows for growths (prays K.C. publishes more Tremaris bookies.)**

**Onto Chapter 3.**

**_Disclaimer:_ I do not own any of characters from the original _Chanters of Tremaris_ series; I _do_ however own Darrow's "real" name (which I won't tell you!) and Serli, Darrow's mother.**

**_As a side-note:_ I just found out mica is a thin rock (thinner than shale). It can peel off into paper-thin sheets. Also, you know that sparkly stuff in your toothpaste? That's mica! Kinda cool, eh?**

**This chapter is also kinda long. Its repayment for not publishing before running off to camp. :) buh-bye, R&R plz!**

_Chapter 3: Darrow's Name_

"No!" Trout yelled. The dead Mica came closer. "Stay away…" He wept (He rarely cried) "Please…" He felt a hurt deep in his soul, seeing Mica again had broken his heart all over again.

Ropes twined around his arms and legs, rooting him to the dream-ground. Dead-Mica drew nearer; he could feel the death-like cold on his skin.

"Trout…" She whispered. "TROUT!"

"Mica, please!" He didn't know how long he could keep the tears from spilling out of his eyes. She, that Trout had known, never knew how much he loved her. "I'm sorry… It came too fast… I couldn't stop it…" His pleads fell on deaf ears.

"You left me to die, Trout!" Dead-Mica accused. "You did nothing! You will pay with your life!" Trout didn't want to die. His bridge wasn't finished; the which-way hadn't been perfected. He struggled against the bonds. They only held him tighter. Dead-Mica placed her freezing fingers onto Trout's throat.

He and Mica (when she was living) were about the same strength, but in lands of the dead, Mica was stronger. She clenched harder. Spots appeared in front of his eyes. Air was being deprived of his brain.

A realization dawned on Trout. If he died now, he would be with Mica forever. The thought stopped the struggles. The ropes that bound him disappeared and Mica let go. She had stepped back, thinking him dead.

Trout stood, still dizzy from the lack of oxygen, and embraced the dead woman. She was deathly cold. He hugged he tighter unknowingly giving her some of his warmth. Tears streamed down Mica's cold face. She reached up and kissed Trout on the lips, he was beginning to feel colder and she was beginning to feel hotter.

He broke the kiss (due to another lack of air to breathe). Mica was more tepid than when he had first met her. She whispered in his ear. He nodded in agreement.

_-In the lands of the living-_

Trout awoke, he was in his bed and Halasaa was holding his hand, doing a Dance of Becoming.

_Ah._ He said. _Welcome back to the lands of the living. We almost lost you._

"I have to go!" He may have sounded half-crazed, but this dream wasn't a dream. It had been longer. He _had_ touched Mica this time. He _had_ hugged his dead love. He _had_ agreed to what Mica had said.

_You have just awoken, Trout, you cannot go anywhere. It may kill you._

"Then at least I'd be with Mica." Trout said sourly. Then, Halasaa hadn't heard of his promise. "I told Mica I would be there!" Trout couldn't remember where she had told him to be, just that he had to be there soon.

_I have never heard of this. _Halasaa said, dubious. _But, I think you two share a unique bond. If Mica's spirit speaks truthfully, then we must obey it. Come let us take the _Fledgewing_ you can heal on the boat. We will explain it to Tonno._ Trout was stunned by Halasaa's long speech, but stood. He had shaky feet and he leaned on the Tree Man's lean form. "Thank you, Halasaa." He could still feel the ghostly imprint of Mica's hands on his back and her lips on his.

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Calwyn walked with Darrow on the crowded street. They were near the docks. He seemed to be looking for a certain ship.

"This was where I was captured and taken to the Black Palace, as I once told you," He said suddenly.

"I remember," _Please, no pity…_ his voice rang in her head. "Why are we here in Geel?"

"To look for a ship," something gnawed at him, what she couldn't guess. "Here, the Dock Master." They had approached a fat man. Darrow spoke. "I am looking for a ship, can you tell me when it last docked?"

"Yes, sir, I can." The over-sized Dock Master replied. Darrow whispered something to Calwyn, she looked unhappy, but complied. "It'll cost ye."

"I can pay. How much?"

"10 Marks."

"6." Darrow countered.

"8 Marks, that's my final deal." The portly man offered.

"Deal." Darrow agreed. Calwyn was scowling at Darrow, she was probably angry about his sending her away, but it was a surprise.

"Which ship ye be lookin' fur?"

"The _Gold Arrow_." Darrow privately hoped it wasn't here in the port, that way he could spend more time with Calwyn.

The man looked at his tablet, then he looked up. "Its your lucky day m'friend. _Gold Arrow_ is here in port. Dock 10." Nodding, Darrow handed the Dock Master the 8 marks as promised. He went and fetched Calwyn.

"Dock 10." He repeated.

"I don't see why you have to keep it a secret. Secrets are dangerous." Calwyn pushed out her lower lip and bulged her eyes in a puppy-dog eye fashion. He kissed her on the lips and took her hand.

"You'll see, love." They walked toward Dock 10. Calwyn pulled up her hood, lest any see the Singer of all Songs. Crowds still weren't her forte.

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Joran looked out over the prow of the ship. Unloading the supplies was going well. In a few hours, they would pull out of Geel. His wife, Serli, came out. She slipped under his arm, feeling the warmth of his body.

"Joran dear, I need more parchment." Her grey hair glinted like silver. In a few years, they both would retire back to the Kalysons.

Then Serli saw something that made her heart jump; she even felt Joran's race. A tall man mirroring Joran stood at the gangplank, on his right was a hooded woman. Could it… could it really be their son?

"Ho!" Their son yelled.

"Ho!" Joran hailed. Serli felt it rumble in her husband's chest. "Come aboard!"

The pair boarded the ship. Serli wiggled out of Joran's embrace and ran to hug Eron (their son); tears streamed down her sun-tanned face. She practically jumped onto her son she was so excited.

"I knew you would come back!" She wiped tears away. "I knew it!" Darrow was obviously pleased at his homecoming.

Joran joined them. "Hello, m'boy." The woman in the cloak was momentarily forgotten.

Eron turned from Serli to Joran. "Hello, M-Mother. Hello, Father." The ordeal had attracted the crew's attention. The first mate, the only crewmember from the original crew came up to him.

"Welcome back, Mouse." He said.

"Thank you." Darrow replied.

"Come to my quarters, son, bring your woman with you." Joran interrupted. They made their way through the crowd. Calwyn quietly followed. The first mate stuck around to talk with Darrow.

"I'm glad you're back, Mouse, Arram died a couple years back. Almost everyone else left after your… _peculiar_ display."

"I see," Was all Darrow could say. _Gold Arrow_ started to pull out of the port.

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Calwyn sat. Darrow sat next to her. Calwyn broke the silence between them. "Your nickname was _Mouse_?"

"Yes, I'll explain it later." He replied shortly.

_What is your real name? If this if the _Gold Arrow_; Darrow is not your real name, is it?_ Calwyn questioned in mind-speech.

"No, that's why I came here to find it. For many years I've wanted to come back. Then, the chase with Samis occurred. Now is the only time I've had."

_And you wanted to _leave_ me!_ Calwyn accused.

"Not, leave-"

"Eron, get a chair for your mother." Joran said. Darrow blinked, _Eron?_

Calwyn sighed. "I think, sir, we should refer to your son as Darrow."

Looking at his mother, then at his father's surprised face, he spoke. "No, it's alright. Eron…" He trailed off. It was too simple. Looking out the porthole, he thought to himself, _My name is Eron. I am Eron. I am a son of the Marshlands._

His lover spoke; interrupting his thoughts. "Darrow, er, Eron, your mother still doesn't have a chair."

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**NO: So, yeah. I invented 'Eron'. Nothing big… I just thought Darrow should have a _real_ name, not the ship's name that he semi-grew up on.**


	4. Travel by Ship

**NO: These were all pre-written, but I'm just now getting the time to transfer them to the Internet! Yippee!**

_Chapter 4: Travel by Ship_

Against his will, Tonno was forced to ready the _Fledgewing_ for another trip. Keela stayed behind, with some conditions. Tonno would return and the three would come back safe and sound.

"If not," she had said. "Then I'll be forced to come find you myself. And that wouldn't be pretty, would it?" She had kissed Tonno on the lips and watched them sail into the rising sun.

Trout was silent. It had hurt watching Keela kiss Tonno, it had hurt watching Calwyn embrace Darrow. They only reminded him of what he had lost. _How could that be fair? Everyone got someone special and I'm left with no one. Only my machines keep me from totally leaving._

_Do not fret, _Halasaa said. _You will see Mica again._

"I know. But I want to see her now. To hold her like everyone else! Everyone else has a lover. Except me."

_I do not. Sometimes, the ones we love change in the river, though maybe not in the way we want._

This sobered Trout. It would take a week or so to reach Antaris. He didn't know how long she would wait… or if she was there.

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Darrow fetched his mother a chair, then the pot of raspberry-leaf tea. Joran spoke first. "Eron, will you introduce us to your young lady?"

"Sorry… Father," It was obvious the title was unusual to Darrow. "This is Calwyn," he said. "She's-"

"A priestess from Antaris." Calwyn jumped in.

"And my Fiancée." Darrow finished. Calwyn had enough sense not to look surprised, Darrow's parents _did_, however, look amazed.

"Joran," Serli said. "I think you and Eron should go outside, you know, get some fresh air."

"But-" Joran countered. Serli narrowed her eyes. Joran may have been the captain, but she was the captain's wife. The two men left.

"So, you are my son's Fiancée?" She asked Calwyn.

"Well, I didn't know until just now…" The two women laughed. Serli sobered and looked at Calwyn.

"He was stolen from me, you know."

"Yes, here in Geel."

Serli leaned in. "There have been tales that Calwyn Many-Songs is a goddess, is this true?" Calwyn was surprised to see the ship moving.

"I am no goddess, no more than you are."

"In any case, you are to marry my son?"

"I guess so."

"Yes or no?"

"Yes." Calwyn said with her whole heart. "I am."

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Joran, without knowing it, asked the same question. "Are you really going to marry the Sing of all Songs?"

"Yes sir." Darrow replied, it was easy to slip into the old titles he'd grown up around. "Are we going to the Kalysons?"

"Yes, Eron. We are taking goods back."

"May we follow you? We will be able to keep up. Or, with my permission, we could lash _Flight_ to your ship, using your permission, of course."

Sighing, Joran consented and Calwyn pushed _Flight_ next to _Gold Arrow_. As soon as Darrow and Calwyn secretly used Ironcraft to bind the ropes, they were off.

That night, Calwyn and Darrow dined with Joran and Serli. Joran, again, broke the silence. "When we hit the Kalysons, you two will be married, sound good?"

"Yes sir!" They both said. Calwyn sent Darrow a mind-grin.

Little did the crew know, but Miss Calwyn, as she was referred, would send a wind their way the whole trip, this would be the fastest trip from Geel to the Kalysons they'd ever experienced.

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Samis awoke. He was in an odd room with bleeping machines and super-soft beds. A nurse looked at him. She touched a button.

He started to sing a song of Ironcraft, but it wouldn't do anything. He had no chantment here…

…Wherever 'here' was…


	5. Trout's Dream II

**Nixiesocean: Yay! I finally got FF.N to put up a Kate Constable section… woot! Well, no need for me to keep ya from the story, albeit a shaky one, lol!**

_Chapter 5: Trout's Dram II_

Trout looked across the waters through the looking glass he had created. There, a large ship with a smaller ship lashed to it, sailed at a high speed. If they slowed up, they could miss it… at the bow of the other ship, two tall figures looked across the sea, much like he was from the crow's nest. The ship was close now, almost to them.

"Tonno!" He called, but the captain had already slowed at seeing the larger ship. He looked back to the ship. He now could clearly make out the name: _Gold Arrow_. _Sounds like…_ Trout was shaken out of his thoughts by a voice he knew well, Darrow's.

"Trout!" Darrow called. He turned to the man next to him and Darrow retreated into the cabin. The other man, who looked like Darrow, hailed Tonno.

"Hail!" He called.

"Hail!" Tonno yelled back.

"Come aboard!" The captain of _Gold Arrow_ said. "We'll talk over lunch!" The crew easily boarded the ship, Tonno first and Halasaa last.

Trout kept his head down, as he often did after… _then_. He couldn't think of it, lest everyone see his tears. The captain introduced himself as Joran, Darrow's father. Though he called him Eron, not Darrow…

"Come along, well dine in my quarters. It may be cramped, but the food is worth it." He winked. Trout counted the grains of wood in the deck while Captain Joran led them to the captain's quarters.

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_Sister!_ Halasaa greeted. _How is your child?_ Calwyn felt herself blush. Did every Tree Person know she was pregnant? Halasaa's voice came back to her very sad. _Do not let Trout sleep normally. You'll need to put him in a trance of Seeming. He's… he's been having certain_ dreams_- about Mica._

A pang in her heart made her draw away from the table. _What types?_

_He goes to a dream place much like the sacred Knot of the Waters._ Halasaa informed her.

_What does he see there?_ Calwyn requested of her brother.

_I do not know. I left before it started. He says Mica is alive._ Halasaa said. He felt his sister fend off tears at the mention of her old friend.

_She_ cannot_ be, Halasaa. I saw no spark in her, I would know. I tried to heal her._ Calwyn said reasonably.

_Maybe some force drives Mica back into Trout's dreams along with our world?_

_Halasaa, you know as well as I the impossibility of such an occurrence._

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Trout lay curled up in a corner of the Captain's quarters. He tried to make himself invisible against the wooden walls. Calwyn came to him, her mouth moved. He smiled to himself. They'd forgotten his deafness. He nodded into sleep, merely from lack of true sleep. He smiled as he left the realm of reality, he would see Mica again.

_He stood on the banks of the familiar scene. The river trickled and hummed. The sky never lost its unending blueness. He looked around. "Mica?" He called into the air. He felt a blast of cold, deathly cold, air next to him. There, he saw her with her mop of hair and golden eyes._

_"You called, Trout?" She asked. The voice that spoke was not Mica's. It didn't have her accent or her playfulness._

_"Mica…" He reached out a ghostly hand to touch her cheek. She reached out a hand to clasp his. When he touched it, it was cold. Yet, warmer than the last time they had met. Unconsciously, he took her into an embrace, tears of happiness flowing down his cheeks. He felt cold seep right into his bones, but Trout didn't care. Here he was, holding in his arms the one thing he had lost. Along with her, he had lost part of himself._

_Her golden eyes met his eyes. He leaned down and kissed her warming lips. She responded to the kiss in kind. When they released the kiss, he saw her gently fading in and out of his arms._

_"Mica!" He said as she backed away. She was fading into nothing. "Don't leave me again!"_

_"Trout," Her not-Mica voice said. "Meet me under the Blazetree in Antaris. I'll meet you there!" He ran up to hold her again, but by the time he reached where she had stood, Mica's form was gone. Her voice echoes eerily off the too-green hills._

_"_Meet me under the Blazetree in Antaris, I'll meet you there!_"_

_"Mica!" He screamed into the scene that never changed. Finally, he himself was being wrenched out of this dream world_.

"Trout!" Calwyn's voice said to him. "Wake up, Trout!" His eyes opened automatically.

"Calwyn?" He asked groggily.

"Trout, you can't go to sleep. Please!" She pleaded. He wanted to respond _'You wouldn't know why I sleep. I see Mica.'_ "Let me heal your ear."

"No." he said. This was the only way he had survived from Samis. This was how Seeming and the Power of Ice didn't affect him. "I want too keep it this way."

"Trout," She said warningly. She reached out a hand to start the Dance of Becoming. "Let me-"

His eyes flashed angrily. "When I say 'no' I mean _'no'_, Calwyn." He shoved her hand away and rolled onto his half-deaf ear.

"Fine. I was just trying to help." She whispered. "After all, you're not the only one that misses Mica." His heart, for the first time in ages, didn't ache when she said her name. In fact, it soared.

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"Tonno, he needs to stay." Calwyn said. "I need to keep an eye or both on him."

"I'm sorry, Calwyn. He's the one that drug me from Emeron, so he has to stay with me." Tonno replied. "We need to keep on our course." He moved around Calwyn to go get Trout.

"Where are you headed?" The Tree Person/Voiced One asked.

"Antaris. He wants to see her grave." Tonno replied going over to Trout. "Hey, wake up. We're leaving."

Trout's eyes fluttered open. "Antaris, the Blazetree, Tonno. That's where we need to go."

"The _Blazetree_?" Calwyn screeched. "The most sacred place in all of Antaris? There is _no way_ the sisters will let you near the Sacred Valley!"

"I think they will," Trout said sourly. "_Calwyn_. I hope you and _your_ lover have a good time." He walked out, leaving Calwyn gaping at Tonno.

"You're _actually_ going to take him there?" She asked, incredulous.

"Yes, Calwyn. I am. I know the importance of her to him. He lost part of himself with her." Tonno said. Was he getting soft because of Keela?

"In any case, you can't get him into the Sacred Valley. There'll be no way the sisters will let him." Calwyn reasoned.

"If I remember correctly, Calwyn, we also said there was no cure for the Chanter Sickness. Yet, here you and Darrow are, alive and with Chantment." With that last reminder, Tonno turned around and walked to his boat to cast off the larger _Gold Arrow._


End file.
